Secretary Rice: Travel to Ethiopia and Belgium, First Week of December 2007

Fulfilling Security Commitments in Afghanistan
Secretary Rice (Dec. 7): "We talked...about Afghanistan and the importance of fulfilling our security commitments in Afghanistan. Obviously, Afghanistan is the largest mission that the alliance has taken on in its history. It's a very difficult mission, but the allies are performing and performing well." Full Text | View Video

In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the Secretary attended a meeting with leaders from the African Great Lakes states (Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda) to discuss issues of regional peace and security on December 5. Secretary Rice also engaged in consultations on current developments in Somalia and on implementation of Sudan’s Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) with cabinet ministers from east African countries as well as senior representatives of the African Union and United Nations. She also held bilateral meetings with the Government of Ethiopia.

Secretary Rice arrived in Brussels on December 6 to attend foreign ministerial sessions on December 7 among NATO’s 26 Allies. This includes a meeting of the North Atlantic Council, which is likely to discuss Afghanistan, Kosovo, the Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty regime, and the upcoming NATO Summit in Bucharest. She will participate in a meeting of the 26 Allies with NATO’s seven Mediterranean Dialogue partners (Algeria, Egypt, Mauritania, Morocco, Israel, Jordan, and Tunisia) and a session of the NATO-Russia Council. There will also be a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission. She will also take part in a transatlantic dinner bringing together EU and NATO foreign ministers.